Empty Spaces
by mortenavida
Summary: Cougar-loving Harry Potter agrees to help newly-widowed Molly Weasley adjust to life. He didn't realize that it would be her helping him instead of the other way around.


Written for hprarefest 2012.

* * *

_June 5th_

_Arthur Weasley, Head of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells Protective Objects, passed away last night due to his injuries. As_ The Daily Prophet_ reported yesterday, Mr. Weasley and several of his partners were within the Ministry during reconstruction when the walls suddenly collapsed. Mr. Weasley pushed several of the men out of harm's way before falling beneath a section of wall. His death is especially hard for the family as it is a reminder of how their son, Fred Weasley, perished in the war years ago._

_Auror Ronald Weasley told us, "My father died a hero, like he always wanted. However, the wall that fell was part of the walls already finished. I will not rest until I find out who has done this." He has not been the only person to suspect foul play and we at _The Daily Prophet _have to agree. The situation is suspicious and we await what Auror Weasley finds._

_The funeral ceremony for Arthur Weasley will be closed to the public with only close friends and family invited to attend. Well-wishes are being accepted by Percy Weasley and his wife Audrey._

Despite attending numerous funerals after the war, Harry was still surprised at the simplicity of a wizard funeral. Sure, Dumbledore's had been different, but any celebrity's funeral would be like that. He shuddered at the thought of what _his_ would turn out to be. He had a funny feeling that, one day, he would be in Dumbledore's position and it would be his job to mentor the next Savior. The thought made him shudder and, as selfish as it was, he never wanted to see that day.

"There are so many people here with red hair," his girlfriend, Morena Bulstrode, whispered into his ear. She had been a Ravenclaw a short time after his parents started Hogwarts; Millicent was her niece. The papers enjoyed slandering his name over their age difference until they realized Harry didn't quite care.

Her quirked sense of humor always made him smile. "That's because they're all hot heads," he said just as softly.

"And here I thought it was because they had no souls and would become blood-sucking vampires after they died."

Harry hid his grin behind his glass. "Behave," he murmured as Ron approached them.

"Hey, Harry." Ron pulled him into a friendly hug. It had taken him a while, but he did eventually get over Harry's dating habits. 'At least it's not Malfoy' had been his mantra for a month. "Thank you for coming. It means a lot to mum."

"It's no problem, honest." Harry patted Ron's shoulder. "Have Hermione and Neville arrived yet?"

"Not yet. Hermione had early contractions, so I told them not to worry."

"Ah, but you know her."

"I do." Ron looked to Morena. "Nice to see you again. Sorry it isn't under better circumstances."

"I understand." She watched him walk to other guests before speaking again. "Being an Auror sure has changed him."

"No," Harry disagreed. "Losing his father did. Even as an Auror, he was never this serious before. Come on, let's go find a seat."

"Somewhere not around soulless vampires?"

Harry shook his head and led her to the Burrow's living room. Charlie stood and offered Morena his seat; she graciously accepted. Harry perched on the arm of the chair, sliding his hand around her shoulders.

As much as Harry loved his adopted family, he didn't want to be here. When a red-eyed Molly walked through the door to make her rounds with the guests, Harry finally felt his heart break, crying with her as they hugged.

()()()

Sex with Morena had always been an adventurous affair. She liked it anywhere within their shared apartment and Harry couldn't find it in himself to say no. There was always an emptiness after it was done, but he didn't dare tell her that. He didn't want to sleep alone, after all.

There were some days she could tell. The day after they lay Arthur Weasley to rest was one of them. Harry thrust into her roughly, his balls slapping against her buttocks. The sound of their skin connecting was drowned out by Morena's cries; she had never mastered volume control.

Harry gripped onto her hip, keeping her steady against the bathroom counter. His other hand teased at her clit, stroking it in circled just the way she liked it. Her cries soon went from "I'm just making these to turn you on" to "oh, Merlin, don't stop" quickly. The deep and uncontrollable moans meant she was close.

Her legs wrapped around his backside and he felt her feet curl in against him. His fingers, already wet between her legs, were coated more as she shuddered against him. Her walls tightened around his dick and he closed his eyes, pressing into her roughly as he released.

His chest felt heavy and Harry, as usual, didn't know why.

"I guess that didn't distract you like I thought it would."

Harry blinked open his eyes. "Huh?"

"Always articulate." Morena leaned up to kiss him, her chest pressing against his. "I'm going to shower. You go brood or whatever it is you need to do."

He shut his eyes as she slipped off his now flaccid penis. There was sure to be some of his cum escaping from between her thighs. He waited until he heard the shower start before leaving the bathroom and shutting the door behind him.

No matter what he did, all he could see was Molly Weasley, crying silently while holding onto Percy's hand as they lowered her husband into the ground.

()()()

There was an unspoken rule in the Weasley households that if more than half the family was there, the rest were required to show up. Morena called it "The Redhead Convention" whenever Harry got word that he should be at one of the houses; only Bill found this to be amusing. This particular gathering called for no spouses and no Molly, making Harry wonder what was happening.

Bill sat at the head of the table, staring at a long scratch in the surface. Charlie balanced his chair on two legs beside him, ignoring whenever Percy threw him a dirty look from across the table on Bill's other side. George, with his ever-present necklace carrying Fred's miniature portrait, sat beside Charlie. Ron sat next to the one-eared Weasley while Ginny sat backwards in a chair next to Percy. Harry took the remaining chair opposite Bill, between the youngest siblings.

"Sorry I'm late, apparently," he said.

Ginny crossed her arms over the back of her chair. "You're not late. It's not like this was scheduled."

"Yeah, why are we here?" Charlie let his chair fall straight with a _bang_. "Percy?"

Percy spread his hands and sighed. "I just wanted us to talk."

"About what?" Charlie leaned back again. "Politics?"

Percy shot his older brother a harsh look. "No. I want us to talk about mum." The table fell silent and Percy turned red under the sudden scrutiny. "I'm just worried about her. She hasn't been the same since—"

"Of _course_ she hasn't been the same, you nitwit," Ron snarled. "Would you be if you lost Audrey?"

The table erupted. Harry felt a headache start to form as most of the Weasley siblings, including Fred, argued about spouses and loss. Across the table, Bill rubbed at his temples, silent. Harry tried to remember if the full moon was close, but he couldn't recall.

Bill reached out to take the cup in front of him. A simple wave of his wand and the room went silent. Mouths moved for a moment longer before one-by-one, they realized what had happened.

"We were never good at family discussions." Bill held up the cup and waved it. "Now, whoever holds this cup gets to talk." He made sure they all saw it before he passed it to Percy. "Everybody else stays quiet."

Ron yelled soundlessly at Bill and Harry vowed to find and learn this spell.

Percy held the cup close. "I'm concerned because she's alone at the Burrow now. There's nobody there to distract her."

Ginny held out a hand for the cup. She smiled when Percy handed it over with no complaint. "Maybe she should come stay with one of us? Or Hermione and Neville since they just had kids. She loves taking care of babies."

Charlie motioned for the cup. "No to Hermione and Neville. She's our mum, not theirs." Harry felt something in his chest fill at his inclusion in this meeting. "So do we have any volunteers? I would, but mum on the reserve just…"

Bill nodded. "Fleur and mum don't agree on how to raise our children." He motioned toward George. "She'll ruin the shop."

Ron grabbed the cup. "I'm never home and I think Pansy would drive her absolutely nutters."

Harry smirked at that. It still amused him to think of them together. "Oh, sod it." He leaned his elbows on the table. "Morena's talking about moving once our lease is up. We'll go stay at the Burrow." Harry nodded at Bill as the eldest Weasley lifted the spell. "We'll just tell her we can't find a nice place, yet."

"You think she'll go for that?" Ginny stood up to turn her chair the proper way. "Morena, I mean."

Harry shrugged. "If she doesn't, I'll go alone and pretend we're fighting. I do miss the Burrow."

The Weasley siblings relaxed. Percy slumped back against his chair. "It's settled, then."

Harry smiled and wondered how he was going to get Morena to agree.

()()()

It wasn't been too difficult to get Morena into the idea of living at the Burrow. And, as soon as Molly heard they needed a place to stay, she opened her door and settled them right in. There was a small fight about rent, but it was eventually agreed they would just help pay for the food; Molly would take nothing else.

The two women spent time together in the kitchen, baking goodies for the entire extended Weasley and Bulstrode families. Harry tried to help during his time off, but they would have none of it. The last time he attempted to help, Morena threw a wad of cookie dough at him (which she later cleaned off of him while alone in their room).

Getting Molly completely out of her depression was a delicate process. Harry and Morena tried not to get too close to another while she was in the room, but Harry could tell Molly missed some kind of physical contact. He wanted to be the one to help her obtain it. The thought surprised him and, when he brought it up to Morena, he felt a little embarrassed. Morena simply pressed a kiss to his cheek, gave her blessing, and then pulled him into the shower with her.

To give Harry plenty of time with Molly, Morena set up a vacation to visit her sister and family. This made Harry nervous, mostly because he wasn't sure if she was really okay with this. She did reassure him every night, but guilt still ate at his insides. He hoped that it would clear after a while.

The first night alone with Molly, Harry took her out to dinner. She protested at first, but Harry simply smiled and told her to just accept his gesture of kindness. Her face red and posture almost shy, Molly accepted and let Harry take her to dinner. He left it at that for the first night, not wanting to push too hard just yet. They had time.

Percy visited with Audrey after their third dinner-date. Molly pulled her pregnant daughter-in-law into the kitchen while Harry sat with Percy in the living room, two glasses of Firewhiskey between them. Percy left his untouched.

"Mum says you're taking her to dinner almost every night," Percy said casually. "You don't have to."

"It's better than cooking." Harry picked up his glass. How could he tell Percy he was wooing his mother? "Less work to do around the house."

"Work is what distracts her." Percy leaned forward to take the glass from Harry. "I know what you're trying to do, Harry. Stop it."

"I don't—"

"Harry, please. This is the same way you seduced Morena. We all saw how it happened."

Harry frowned, silent.

"Mum doesn't love you like that and you're doing a disservice by cheating on your girlfriend. Especially one that none of us are sure is right for you."

"I love Morena—"

"Then love her, not mum."

Harry stood and took his glass back. "When I want your opinion on my love life, I'll ask for it. I'm just trying to be nice to your mum, so butt out." He left Percy sitting alone, not sure who he was more irritated with: himself or Percy.

()()()

Percy's accusations pushed Harry to go further than dinner. He walked Molly most of the way home that night, her arm threaded through his own. She leaned against him with a smile and, seeing that so easily on her face, his confidence grew. They stopped by a garden, the magical fairies dancing among the flowers.

"Arthur proposed in a place like this," she said softly.

"Should we leave?"

"No, I like it here." Molly brought them toward a bench. Their fingers laced as they sat. "It's peaceful."

"Yes, it is." Harry let his thumb stroke the back of her hand. "Molly?"

"Harry?"

Harry turned toward her and reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "You're beautiful."

Molly laughed softly. "You flatter me too much."

"I disagree." He leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her head away. "Is something wrong?"

"Yes, and no." Molly took both of his hands. "Harry, I want you to listen closely."

"I am."

"Good." Molly's smile was strained, but she held it. "You cannot replace a mother's love."

"I never—"

"Shush." She shook his hands a bit. "You cannot replace a mother's love, especially like this."

"Molly…"

"Give me three days. Let _me_ show _you_ how it's done."

Harry wasn't too sure where this was going, but he nodded his agreement anyway. "Three days."

"Good boy." Molly patted his cheek and leaned in to kiss his forehead. "Good boy."

()()()

It hadn't taken three days, but Harry let himself enjoy every one of them. He had been nervous about what to expect, but Molly simply brought him back to the Burrow, tucked him in, pressed a kiss to his forehead again, and wished him a good night. Something in Harry warmed at that; he slept better that night than he had in a month.

The next morning, Harry woke to the smell of breakfast. It wasn't anything different than when he came here during the summers, so he didn't think anything of it. Molly piled his plate, just as Harry remembered, and then sat across him with a cup of tea. She waited until he started eating before speaking.

"The last time I only had one child was Bill, but Charlie soon followed, so I'm not going to bother trying to treat you like an only child." Molly motioned up toward the family clock. "You've been added, though it's about time I did that."

Harry turned and smiled as he saw his name settled between Ron and Ginny. "That means a lot, actually."

"I know." Molly reached forward to take his hand. "While here, you will live under the same rules as the rest of my children. Curfew is at eleven, chores will need to be done, and dinner is at six. You will also inform me if you're going anywhere."

"I don't plan on going anywhere."

"Just in case." Molly patted his hand. "After breakfast, you have to go tend to the gnomes in the garden. They're getting out of control."

"The gar—"

"After that, I think your room needs to be picked up." Molly stood and moved around the table to pat Harry's shoulder. "No magic on either. It's your punishment for trying to kiss your mother."

Harry stared at his half-empty plate before laughing. Perhaps he shouldn't have let Molly do this, but it would sure be interesting. He would do his chores and anything else she wanted him to do, but he didn't think things would change. He still wanted to comfort her.

But things did change. As Harry sat at the dinner table that night, head resting next to his plate, he felt relaxed for the first time in years. The smell of Molly's cooking drifted from the kitchen and into his nose, making his stomach growl fiercely. After he cleaned his room, Molly made him repaint part of the outside walls and then let him rest while she went out for dinner supplies.

"Harry, dear, don't put your head on the table."

Harry picked his head up. "I'm so tired…"

"Hush." Molly piled his plate up with several foods. "Have some dinner and then you can wash up and head to bed."

"It's only seven—"

"But I thought you were tired."

Harry hesitated before smiling at her. "All right, wash and bed. Yes, mum."

Molly patted his cheek before sitting across from him. "You argue a lot less than your siblings."

"My siblings are all hot heads." Harry stabbed at his potatoes. "As for me? I've learned it's easier to just do as I'm told."

"Sometimes you should fight with your parents." Molly picked up her fork. "Perhaps tomorrow we'll fight over something."

Harry stared at her, frowning. "Fight?"

"Oh come, now." Molly smiled. "It'll be fun."

()()()

Morena settled herself next to Harry, sliding her hand into his. "You never Owled me."

"Mmhm." Harry closed the book he had been in the middle of. "I know, I'm sorry."

"Did you ever plan to?"

"Eventually." Harry stared at their clasped hands. "How was your vacation?"

"Enlightening. My mother has decided that if I won't marry you, then I should go use my skills as a Professor somewhere." Morena smiled softly. "What do you think about that?"

He knew he had to be honest, but how would she take it? He was supposed to help Molly, not be helped by her. He didn't volunteer himself for the experience he had, but he was glad it happened. "I think it's a fantastic idea, though I'm not sure how well you would do with younger kids."

"You really think so?" Morena sighed, squeezed his hand once, and let go. "Tell me how it was with Molly."

"How what was?"

"You know, the sex." She tried a smile. "The reason I left you two alone."

"Oh, right." He shrugged. "We didn't even kiss."

She pulled back, a hand coming up to rest on her chest. "But I thought—"

"You can't kiss your mum, Morena. Not like that." Harry smiled and leaned over to press a kiss to her cheek. "You should go teach."

"And what are you going to do?"

He hesitated before standing. He placed his book gently on the side table. "Mum and I are going to visit Percy and Audrey. She went into the hospital yesterday for some pains and we just want to be there for them. That's what family does."

"Harry?" Morena took up. "What does this mean for us?"

"I love you, I truly do, but I just…"

She nodded. "I should have known." Shaking her head, Morena stepped closer and placed one last kiss to Harry's lips. "I will miss us, Harry Potter, but I hope that you will never forget me as a friend."

"I don't think I can."

"Are you ready, Harry?" Molly's voice carried from the other room.

"I'm coming, mum." Harry gave Morena a smile. "I'll see you around."

"Yes, see you."

Harry left her in the living room and went to take Molly's arm, the hole in his heart no longer empty.


End file.
